Self-contained automatic tackle



A. P. SCHAT SELF CONTAINED AUTOMATIC TACKLE May 21, 1929.,

Original Filed Feb. 3. 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet only May 21, 1929. sc T I1,714,452

SELF CONTAINED AUTOMATIC TACKLE Original Filed Feb. 3. 1921 2Sheets-Sheet 2 II III illll Illl 11mm Jne]? 80242" Patented May 21,1929.

' UNITED STA TES . ANE P. SCHAT, 0'1 UTRECH'I, NETHERLANDS.

SELF-CONTAINED AUTOMATIC TACKLE.

Application filed February a, 1921, Serial no; 442,033, and in theNetherlands December 20, 1919.

Renewed July 23, 1928;

My invention relates to hoisting and lowering devices, and will bedescribed n tlns specification with special reference to ts use withlifeboats. The Netherlands application for patentof this invention, wasfiled Dec. 20, 1919, No. 13,623.

Lowering a lifeboat is, as a r ule,-effected by men standing on deck ofthe ship, and when aheavy boat is to be lowered with the ordinary pulleyblocks, each fall has to becarefully held and paid out by two men, thusrequiring four mento handle the falls; while a fifth man is required forwatching the descent of the boat and for transmitting to the men on deckwho are paying out the falls the orders received from the man Who is incommand on the descending boat. The five men on deck have to remainbehind'till the boat is'safely launched, andthen'they may slide downinto it on ropes specially prepared for that pur- JOse. V

lVith smaller boats fewer men are required to remain on deck, and modernappliances aim to still further reduce this number, but in doing so thedanger to those in the boats is generally increased.

WVhen the boat is lowered by two independent falls, one fall is oftenpaid out. fasterthan the other, which throws the keel of the boa out ofhorizontal position.

In an attempt to overcome these and other difficulties, means have beenprovided whereby the falls may be paid out bymen standing in thelifeboat itself, but this requires the taking up of the coiled up fallsinto the boat where they are liable toget-badly tangled in a way toseriously interfere with the lowering operation, to say nothing of beinga source of annoyance and danger to the occupants of the boat; andfinally when the boat is released from the blocks and launched, thetangled falls must be thrown overboard, which may again cause seriousdifiiculty.

If the falls are arranged to be wound on a drum on deck, a separate ropemust be employed to operate the drum, and this rope is liable to getentangled and render the operation of the drum'impossible.

The object of the present invention is to avoid the above disadvantagesand to provide means whereby the lifeboat maybe .low

ered by persons standing in the boatby one person alone if needbe'without the falls being takeninto'theboat, and without the need of anadditional rope, the entire operation weight, without means on deck onlyrequiring the use of the ordinary ropes rove through the pulleyblocksfrom whichv the boat is suspended.

Another object is to provide m'eanslocated in or adjacent to the lowerpulley block, for performingthe above operation;

More specific objects are'to'provide means for utilizing the weightofthe boat to automatically brake and release the pulleys, and also whendesired, the rope which passes'therethrough; and further meansforregulating said automatic bra-kingand releasing means, or forcontrolling the same independently of the weightof the boat, all beinunder the perfeet control of one man in the l doat.

Still another objectis to utilize the differen cos of tension indifferent parts of the'tackle rope for automatically braking andreleasing the different parts as above referred to.

Another object is to provide a tackle in which the hauling part of thetackle is completely relieved of all strain, so that the load, whendesired, may remain poised at any height entirely under the action ofits own the free end of the hauling cable being operator or otherwise.

Another important object is to provide (preferably a drum) for re-'ceiving and payingout the tackle rope, said drum being provided withloaded braking mechanism operated by-a springor weight, and adapted totake up the major portion of the strain imposed upon the rope by theweight of the load, thereby leaving only a slight braking duty to beperformed by the braking mechanism of the tackle.

A still further object is to provide means in addition to said lastnamed means for further utilizing the difference in the tension indifferent parts of the tackle rope for automatically controlling thebrake of said winch drum on deck instead of controlling it by a springor weight as just above stated.

Other objects will appear in the subjoined description. r 5

An important feature of'the invention consists in providing the lowerblock of the tackle with a lever having along and a short arm, the shortarm carrying a brake'adapted held at all by the hand of the I to bemoved into and out of frictional enference in tension in the standingand haulbe pressed in opposite directions by the difing part of therope, according to whether the load is being raised or lowered or heldpoised on the tackle, the arrangement being such that when the boat isbeing elevated the brake is automatically moved out of engagement withthe pulley, and when it is being lowered, it is automatically pressedinto engagement therewith, and if desired, with a force suflicient tohold the boat poised; said longer arm of the lever being also providedwith anextension for manually easing up the automatic braking pressuresufliciently to permit theboat to descend, or forincreasing saidpressure, it need requires.

In carrying out the present invention, I have provided automatic meanswhereby one or more pulleys of one'of the blOCl S-?PI'(3TI'* ably thelower block areprevented from revolving during the veering operation,but all the pulleys of the block have freedom of rotation during thehoisting operation.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction andarrangement of parts as will be hereinafter described and claimed,reference being bad to the accompanying drawings in which Cir Fig. 1 isa front View of a tackle embodying my improvements, with the hooksomitted from the blocks.

Fig. 2 is a side view of the same; and,

Fig. 3 is a view showing means on deck for automatically controlling theh aulingi end of the tackle rope; and

Fig. 4 is a detail view showing. a method of adjustably connecting thecross rods with the thrust bars.

In the construction shown, the fixed block 1 of the tackle and therunning block 2 are each provided with three pulleys, 3, 4, 5, and 6, 7,8, respectively. 1 The load cable is secured at one end of the casing ofthe fixed block 1, and then passed successively over pulleys 8, 5, 6, 3,f7, and4. The side plates 9 and 10 of the running blocks 2 are eachprovided with two horizontal slots 11 and 12 in alignment with eachother for receiving and guiding the ends of cross rods 13 and 14 coupledby rigid members 15 and 16 provided on the outside of the plates 9 and10, so that the ends of said slots serve as abutments for limiting thehorizontal movement of the rods 13 and 14. The rod 13 carries ananti-friction roller 17 in permanent engagement with the fixed part 18of the load cable which part is secured at its upper end to the crossrod 9 of the upper pulley block, and the rod 14 carries an anti-frictionroller 19 in permanent engagement with the hauling part 20 of said cablebetween the pulleys 7v and 4.

Positively mounted on the rod 14 is the upper end of a lever 21 keyed ona pin 22 which is rotatably mounted in bearings in the plates 9 and 10,and keyed on said pin are two brake shoes 23 and 24 having beveled edgesand each adapted to engage correspondingly beveled edges of the adjacentpulleys 6,7, and 7, 8, respectively.

The length of the rigid members 15, 16, is such that the pressureexerted by the rollers 17 19, on the parts 18 and 20, respectively, ofthe cable, produce in said parts bights 25, 26, which, owing to theweight of the load, have a permanent tendency to straighten themselves.

It is well known that when the load is hoisted, the tension in thehauling part considerably exceeds that in the fixed part of the cable,so that the tension of part 20 exceeds that of part 18, whereby the rods13, 14, in Fig. 1, are moved to the left. This causes the lever 21 tomove inwardly through a certain angular distance, whereby the brake isreleased, and the pulleys 6, 7, 8, are permitted to freely revolveabouttheir shaft. When the load cable is paid out, however, the tension inthe fixed part exceeds that in the yielding or hauling part, sothatthevrods 13, 14, are moved to the right, and the brake shoes are pressedagainst the beveled edges of the pulleys 6, 7, 8, whereby the turningmovement of said pulleys is counteracted. As soon as the brake isapplied, the difference in the tensions in the fixed part 18 and thehauling part 20 is still further increased, and consequently the brakingpower is also increased.

Keyed on pin 22 is a third brake shoe 27 adapted to be pressed againstthe load cable on pulley 7, simultaneously with the application of brakeshoes 23, 24, OII'lEllQ pulleys 6 and 8, whereby the tendency of thecable to slip on pulley 7 is counteracted. j

The lever 21 has an extended portion 28 provided with a handle 29, bymeans of which the pressure brought about by the brake shoes 28, 24,and27, on the pulleys 6, 7, 8, and on the part of the cable led aroundpulley 7, re spectively, may be manually controlled.

As shown in the drawings, especially in Fig. 4, the ends of the rods 13,14, which project beyond the slots 11, 12, are reduced and threaded,shoulders being formed on said rods at the points where they arereduced. Said threaded ends are provided with nuts m which serve to holdthe bars 15, 16 in rigid engagement with said shoulders in adjustedpositions in the slots 11*, 12 of the thrust bars 15, 16 (Figs. 3 and4), whereby to provide means for increasing or decreasing the bights 25,26, in order to vary the braking power of said bights.

From the construction shown and described, it will be seen that when thepulleys 6, 7, 8, are braked to a stand-still by the weight of theload,they will then act as bollards if the tackle rope be paid out. Thisdistributes the braking friction over a large surface, thereby making iteasy on the rope.

Ithas been previously stated that it is one of the objects of theinvention to provide a tackle that will stand poised at any height bythe weight imposed upon it without the necessity of holding the free endof the hauling rope; or, let us say that it is a self-contained tackle,in that respect. It is well known for instance that when using a winchdrum for hoisting or lowering a load, it is always necessary to securethe hauling part of the rope on the drum, irrespective of the number ofturns ofrope around the drum, as otherwise the load would slip as soonas the load is freely suspended from-it. The same is true of ordinarytackles and pulleyblocks, the pulleys of which are held against rotationduring the lowering of the load. If in such constructions the haulingpart did not have atleast some tension "in it, the coils on the drumwould loosen beginning at the hauling end, and the load would simplyfall by gravity. In the present invention the hauling part of the loadcable is gripped by the brake shoe 27 preferably under the influence ofit? e tensions prevailing in the cable when the same is loade lVith mypresent cons'truction, the means for holding the pulleys againstrotation and for locking the hauling part of the load cable areautomatically rendered inoperative when the load is hoisted.

From my invention as described, it will be seen that the brakingmechanism connected with the lower block of the tackle, makes it easy tocontrol the descent of a boat by persons in the boat, since the brakingof the pulleys i'sautomat-ic, and always in direct proportion to theweight of the load. The parts of the device may be so adjusted to eachother that the automatic braking effect of the load is just suflicientto hold the boat poised, or normally braked to a stand-still, in whichcase the boat is lowered by slightly easing up the pressure on the brakeshoes, through a proper manipulation of the hand lever 28. Again, theparts may be so adjusted that the boat would normally descend, in whichcase its descent would be suitably retarded by manually operating saidlever 28.

The principal advantage of my arrangement is that the lowering of theboat may be effected by persons in the boat without the necessity oftaking the coiled up fall along in the boat. I

'Having now particularly described my said invention, what I claim asnew and desire to protect by Letters Patent is 1. In a tackle forhandling lifeboats, a running block with opposing side plates and aplurality of pulleys, all of said pulleys being mounted betweensaidplates and in alinement with each other; and means for utilizing theweight of the boat to simultaneously brake the pulleys of said block andpay out the hauling end of the tackle rope under control.

2. In a tackle for handling lifeboats, a running block with opposingside plates and a plurality of pulleys, all of said pulleys beingmounted between said plates and in alinement with each other ;brakes forsaid block; I

means for utilizing the weight imposed upon the tackle to apply thebrakes to the pulleys of said block as the load is lowered, and to forcethe brakes out of engagement with the pulleys as the load is elevated.

3. In a tackle for handling lifeboats, the combination with one of thetackle blocks of control as the boat is lowered, and to posiQ thehaulingpart tively release the brakes and of the tackle rope as the boat iselevated.

4. A tackle having a running block comprising opposing side plates and aplurality of pulleys, all of said pulleys being mounted between saidplates and in alinement with.

each other; means operable by the weight of the load, as the load islowered, for braking the pulleys of said block, and for paying out undercontrol the hauling part of the tackle rope.

5. A tackle having a running block comprising opposing side plates and aplurality of pulleys, all of said pulleys being mounted between saidplates and in alinement with each other; means, as the load is lowered,for braking the pulleys of said block and for paying out under'controlthe hauling part of the tackle rope, and also for releasing said brakesand hauling end of the rope, as'the load r is elevated.

6. A tackle havinga running block comprising opposing side plates; atransverse axle mounted on said plates; alined pulleys rotatably mountedon said axle between said plates, with the tackle rope led around saidpulleys; braking means for the tackle rope;

and automatic means operable in one direction by the weight of the loadto exert a force proportionate to the weight of theload for applyingsaidbraking means directly to the alined pulleys as the load descends, andfor positively releasing said braking means, as the load is elevated.

7. In tackles for lowering lifeboats, a block having alined pulleys;brakes for engaging said pulleys, one of said pulleys having the haulingpart of the tackle rope led around the same; another brake adapted topress the hauling part of the tackle rope against said pulley aroundwhich it is led, to hold the hauling part of the tackle rope againstloosening on the pulley blocks; and means for utilizing the weight ofthe burden Iiomplpsed upon the tackle to operate all of said ra es.

' having alined scends and when the load is poised;

8. In tackles for lowering lifeboat-s, a block pulleys I brakes forengaging said pulleys, one of said pulleys having the hauling part ofthe tackle rope led around the same another brake adapted to press thehauling part of the tackle rope against said pulley around which it isled, to hold the hauling part of the tackle rope against loosening onthe pulley blocks; means for utilizing the weightof the burden imposedupon the tackle to operate all of said brakes; and additional. means forcontrolling said brakes independently of the burden imposed upon thetackle, and also in cooperation therewith.

tackle block comprising opposing side plates; an axle mounted in saidplates; aline'd pulleys rotatably mounted on said axle betweensaidplates, with the tackle rope led around said pulleys; and brakingmeans for the tackle automatically operated by the weight of the loadand arranged to apply the brakes di rectly to said aline'd pulleys asthe load deand manual means for applying and releasing the brakesindependently of the weight of the load. and also in conjunctiontherewith.

10. In tackles for handling lifeboats, a block having alined pulleys;brakes for engaging said pulleys, one of said braked pulleys having thehauling part of the tackle rope led around the same; another brakemovable V in unison with said first named brakes and adapted to presssaid hauling part of the tackle rope against the pulley around which itis led, to hold the hauling part of the tackle rope against loosening onthe pulley blocks; means for utilizing the weight of the burden imposedupon the tackle, to simultaneously apply all of said brakes as the loadis lowered andwhen it is poised and to force them into inoperativeposition when the load is elevated; and additional means for manuallymanipulating said brakes.

11. In a tackle iior handling lifeboat-s, a block having alined pulleyswith inclined peripheral margins on their opposing faces, one of saidpulleys having the hauling part of the tackle rope led around the same;brakes having shoes with inclined bearing surfaces adapted to fitbetween adjacent pulleys in engagement with said inclined peripheralfaces; another brake movable in unison with said first named brakes andhaving a shoe for entering the annular groove of the pulley around whichthe hauling part of the tackle rope is led said shoe being sufficientlynarrow to enter said groove without contacting with the sides thereof,and having a braking surface adapted to press the hauling part of thetackle rope in said groove, to yieldingly hold the same againstloosening on the pulley blocks and to pay out the same under control asthe part of the 9. In a device of thecharacter described, a

load is lowered; means for utilizing the weight of the burden. imposedupon the tackle to apply all of said brakes as the load is lowered andwhen it is poised, and to force them into inoperative position when theload is elevated; and a lever connected with said brakes for manuallycontrolling the same Hi dependently of the burden of the tackle and alsoin cooperation therewith. y

12. In a tackle for handling lifeboats, a block having alined pulleyswith the hauling tackle rope led around one of said pulleys; brakes forsaid pulleys; another brake adapted to press the hauling part of thetackle rope against said pulley around which it is led, to hold thehauling part of the tackle rope against loosening on the pulleys and topay out said part of the tackle rope under'control as the boat islowered; a bar for engaging the standing and hauling parts of the tacklerope to form bights there in by which bights said bar is simultaneouslypressed in opposite directions, whereby to move said bar in whicheverdirection the resultant pressure is the greatest; all of said brakeshaving their shoes rigidly mounted on a common axle; an operating leverrigidly connected to said axle for operating said brake shoes; saidlever being also operatively connected to said bight-bar, whereby whenthe resultant pressure moves the bar in one direction. the brakes areall simultaneously moved into operative position, and when the resultantpressure moves thebar in the oppo site direction the brakes are allmoved into inoperative position. a y

13. In a tackle for handling lifeboats, a block having alined pulleys,with the hauling part of the tackle rope led around one of said pulleys;brakes for said pulleys; another brake movable simultaneously with saidpulley brakes and adapted to press the hauling part of the tackle ropeagainst said pulley around which it is led, to hold the hauling part ofthe tackle rope against loosening on the pulley blocks, and to pay outsaidipartsof the tackle rope under control as the boat is lowered;mechanism between the standing and hauling parts of the tackle ropesimultaneously pressed in opposite directions by the different tensionsprevailing in said parts in the varying conditions under which thetackle is used; and connections be-' tween said mechanism and the brakesfor utilizing the differential oi said tensions to operate the brakes;whereby when the differential is in one direction, the brakes are movedinto operative position, and when it is in the opposite direction theyare moved into inoperative position.

14; In a tackle for handling lifeboats, a block having a pulley with thehauling part of the tackle rope led around it; a brake adapted topresssaid hauling part of the tackle rope against said pulley aroundwhich it is led to hold said'hauling part against,

loosening on the tackle pulleys, and' topay out said part of the tacklerope under control as the boat is lowered; mechanism'between thestanding and hauling parts of the tackle r from within the same,thecombination with the r'uning block of the ta'ckle, of brakesfor itspulleys; and means for utilizing the difference in tension inthestanding and hauling parts of the tackle rope to operate said brakes. eI v V r 16. In a tackle for lowering a lifeboat from within'the same,thecombination with the running'hlock ofthe tackle, of1brakes for itspulleys; and means for utilizing'the difference in tension] between thestanding and hauling parts of the tackle rope to move the brakes intooperative relation to the pulleys when the load is lowered, andto forcethem away frointhe pulleys when the load is elevated. i

17. In a tackle for loweringai lifeboat from within the same, thecombination with the running block of the'tack le,fo f brakes for itspulleys; and means for utilizing't'he tension in the standing part ofthe tackle ro'pe topress the brakes into operative engagement with thepulleys ,*andin the h auling press the brakesawa'y fro m the pul.

part to l y 'e 18, In a tackle for lowering a lifeboat from within thesame, said tackle having pulleys and brakes therefor, the combinationwith the running block of the tackle,'of means for utilizing thedifference in tension between the standing and hauling parts of thetackle rope to automatically ,move the brakes into engagement with the;pulleys when, the

load is lowered andawayfromthe pulleys when the load is hoisted up.

19. In a tackle for lowering a lifeboat from within the boat, thecombination with the running block of the tackle, of brakes for itspulleys, and mechanism for positively applying and releasing the brakes;bights in the standing and hauling parts of the tackle rope; operativeconnections between said bights and the braking mechanism, saidconnections being pressed in opposite directions by said bights to applyor release the brakes, according to the direction in which the tackle isoperated. p

20. In a tackle for lowering a lifeboatfrom within the boat, a runningblock. having alined pulleys rotatable on an axis held'in.fixe'd'position relative to said block';a standing block; and means forutilizing the difi'er-' ence of tension in the standing and haulingparts of the tackle rope to payout, from-the runningblock to the standing block," theih'afuL load is lowered.

21..In a tackle for lowering a-lifeboat from within the boat, a runningblock-having aline'dpulleysrotatable on an axis heldin fixed positionrelatively to said block; a

standing block; and means for utilizing the difference in, tensionbetween "the standing loadiselevated' n r I r 22. A tackle having itsrunning block pro ng part of saidi rope under control as the 8O andhauling parts of the tacklelrope to 'yieldingly hold and pay out,fromthe running block to the stan'd'ing block, said hauling part of therope under control as the load is low-' "cr ed, and to positivelyrelease the same asthe applying the brakes to thealinedpulleys'as i theload descends; and further braking means also operable the weight of theload for tackle rope asthe load descends.

yielding ly pressing the'hauling end ofthe s 23, A tackle h'avi'ng'arunning blook and axial alinement with each other, said mane having onerope only with the hauling part a standing block, withitsrunningblockprovided witha pluralityofpulleys all in fixed of the" sameextending from the standing bloCkQto the running block; braking meansope'rableby. the weight of the load forapply- 'ing the brakes to thealined pulleys; and additional braking means also operable by the weightof the load forbraking thefhauling end of the rope proportionate to theweight of the load.

n '24:. A'tackle having'pulleys and braking I mechanism, comprisingbrake shoes for engaging the-pulleys; a lever for operating said shoes;;bights' in the tackle rope'for engaging said operating lever, to movethe same back an'd' forth tofapply the brakes and to release the sameaccording tO th'CllIGCtlODf' of said movement, one of said bights beingin the standing part of t-he'tackle ropeand 'theother in thehauling'part; and adjustable means for increasing or; decreasing the bights tovary the automatic brakingv power of the tackle.

25. A tackle havingpulleys and braking mechanism, comprising brake shoesfor engaging the pulleys; a lever for operating said shoes; bights inthe tackle rope for engaging said-operating lever, to move the same backand forth to apply the brakes and to release" the same according to thedirection of said movement, oneof said bights being in the standing partof the tackle rope and the other v inrther aulingpart; adjustablemeansfor increasing or decreasing the bights to vary the automaticbraking power of the tackle; and means for manually controlling .saidbraking mechanism.

\ 26. In a tacl lo, a running block having 013- posing side plates and aplurality of pulleys 1 all mount ed between said side plates inalinement with each other; mechanism carried by t the tackleforyieldingly gripping the haulassociated with the lower block of'one ofwith the' running ing partof the tackle ropeas the load is lowered; saidmechanism being also adapted to automatically release said grip as theload is elevated. a V n V a 27. In a tackle, a running block havingopposing side plates and a plurality of pulleys all mounted between saidside plates in aline ment with eachother; and mechanism carried by theblock for utilizing the differentialof tension between the standing andhauling parts of the tackle rope to pay out under control the haulingpart of the tackle rope.

28. In a device of the character described,

'means for handling a lifeboat from within the boat,'comprising a tacklefor raising me chanism for the drum; andmeains associated with therunning. block of the tackle for controllingfsaid braking mechanism,whereby to control the paying out of the tackle by the drum.

30. In a device of the character described, means suspended from shipdeck for lowering a lifeboat from within the boat, com- ;prising atackle for each end of the boat,

each tackle having anupper and lower block;

a drum on the deck with the hauling parts of the two tackle ropes bothwound around 7 said drum; braking mechanism for the drum responsive tovariations in the pull thereupon by the tackle ropes; and means thetackles for varying the tension on the hauling end of said tackle;whereby to control the rotation of the drum, and through it the loweringof the boat. t

.31. In a device of the character described, means for lowering alifeboat from within the boat, comprising atackle for supporting theboat from the deck of the ship, said tackle having upper and lovaerblocks; a

tackle, said hauling part being coiled around the drum; and meansassociated with the lower blockof the tackle for manually con trollingthe rotation of the drum.

32. In a device of the character described, means for lowering alifeboat from within the boat, comprising a tackle for supporting theboat from the deck of the ship, said tackle having a running block; adrum on the deck with the hauling part of the tackle rope wound aroundsaid drum; automatic braking mechanism for the drum and means includinga lever associated with the running block of the tackle for controllingsaid braking mechanism, whereby to control the pay 7 ing out of the boatfall by the drum, as the boat descends. I V I 33. In a device of thecharacter described, means for'lowering a lifeboat from within the boat,comprising a tackle for supporting the boat from the deck of theship,said tackle having upper and lowerblocks a drum on the deck with thehauling part of the tackle rope associated with the lower block of thetackle for manually controlling the rotation of the drum. i

a 34. In a device of the character described, means for lowering alifeboat from within the boat, comprising a tackle for supporting theboat from the deck of the ship; a drum on the deck with the hauling partof the tackle rope wound around the same; means for braking the drumproportionately to the tackle rope; and mechanism, including a lever,forvaryingthe tension in said hauling p'artiof the rope,- whereby toregulate the paying out of the, tackle by the drum.

In testimonyf whereof I afiix my signature.

ANE P." sonar.

. drum on the deck for the hauling part of the wound around the same;and a lever strain imposedupon thehauling part of the

